The Empire State Building was never intended to be low-impact. It was built as a symbol of the power of New York--and today, it's a surprising case study in the power of efficiency. A series of cost-effective, energy-efficient retrofits have dramatically reduced energy waste in the Empire State Building, saving $2.4 million in operating costs in the first year alone. In the next few years, when the project is complete, the building is expected to reduce its energy use by nearly 40 percent--and save about $4.4 million each year. The waste-cutting retrofits were designed as part of a larger overhaul of the building's aging infrastructure by owner Malkin Holdings. President Tony Malkin (husband of NRDC trustee Shelly Malkin), wasn't about to take a senseless risk with his single largest real estate asset. The proposition had to make business sense. "I'm a capitalist," Malkin ...